In 1966, the Mitsubishi Minicabb cab-over pickup truck was launched to replace the Mitsubishi 360. Powered by the same air cooled two-stroke 359 cc engine as the Minicab, it came with cargo gates on three sides to simplify loading and unloading. The first Minicab was first introduced as a two-door sedan based on the Mitsubishi 360, with a front-mounted ME21 359 cc twin cylinder two stroke air-cooled engine driving the rear wheels,

transverse leaf springs in front and beam axle/leaf springs at the rear. The second generation Minicab was introduced in July 1969 with a three-door sedan body, 359 cc OHV engine and coil springs front and rear. Two 2G21 SOHC water-cooled powerplants were optionally available, the Red 28 hp (21 kW) engine and the Gold engine fitted with twin SU carburetors developing 38 hp (28 kW), which was fitted as standard to the GSS sport model. A two-door wagon body was added in December, which would remain in production until the fourth generation in the early 1980s. The fourth generation Minicabb was also introduced in 1984. Although improvements were made to enhance the Minicabb's commercial applications, the most noticeable changes were made to support personal leisure activities. Angular headlamps played an important role in the Minicabb's styling, along with larger windows to improve visibility. Mitsubishi offered fifteen front- and four-wheel drive van model variations and ten truck variations. The fourth generation Minicabb incorporated many class-leading features such as an automatic free-wheel hub adopted on all 4WD models, while 2WD models had a turning radius of 3.7 metres (12.1 ft). The estate models featured the first sliding sunroof in their class. Then, in 1987, the Minicabb became the first supercharged kei car.